Beware cheap ear muffs

E

EZED

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Let me explain I have hearing loss due to my job and have hearing aids paid for by others. I was using a CHEAP pair of electronic ear muffs while shooting and it did not cut out but actually amplified the sound. It was like being stabbed in the ear with a screw driver the pain was that intense. Please fellows don't cheap out on your hearing protection you only have one set of ears.

Thanks Edge
 
Yeah, I would like to know what kind they were too. I have a pair of cheap electronic earmuffs. I would like to not go deaf tomorrow, as I have found that I like hearing stuff.
 
Cheap ear muffs

No I am not after them because they will have some excuse for the failure as it would be my fault for not using the correct batteries or something of the sort. As I said please don't cheap out on hearing protection as you have only one chance at getting it right my chance is over and i now have to protect what i have left. For you younger fellows please do it right it really isn't that expensive.

Edge
 
EZED said:
The brand name is Caldwell and they are about 1 year old

Edge
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I use Caldwell cheap electronic muffs. I always figured that even if it didn't cut the sound that the speakers were not strong enough to cause any damage. The sound of the rifle shot is not reaching your ear at a high level, if the sound is amplified it can only be as loud as the speakers are able to go.

Do you think its because of the hearing aid that it was so damaging? i.e. the sound of the speakers was at max and then amplified by the hearing aid esentially making it far worse than it would be if the speakers themselves didn't cut out?
 
I could never really understand why ear protection for shooters is rated at between 25 and 30 dbNRR when hearing damage can occur at 85 to 90 db. Repeated exposure at a gun range can be at 130 to 170 db.So would it be correct to say that even while wearing ear protection you are still over or well above the level that hearing loss and damage is caused at 100db to140db.I think a jet at 100 yards is close to 100 db.Obviously from this thread cheap electronic protection can fail, but so can a quality unit.I normally just use Nioshi non E, ear muffs rated at 34 dbNRR the same type that are required at my construction sites and foam plugs as well and never left the range with any adverse effects.Maybe not as fashionable but it definitely does the job.
 
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The last decade I have only bought the best, non-electronic muffs availabe. There isn't a single electronic earmuff that compares to the best non-e muff.

When shooting inside, we (especially my kids) always double plug.

A 3db difference in the rating is DOUBLE the sound pressure !! So a 27 rated muff is half as good as a 30, and a 24 is only 1/4 as good.
 
Always wear double hearing protection - yes it is a pain but you only have one pair of ears. Once hearing loss has occurred, it cannot be restored.
I used Peltor Optime 105 with Howard Leight Laser Lite. Now I use MSA Supreme Pro X with Howard Leight Laser Lite.
 
I don't think any "noise cancelling" headphones would work for a gunblast in part to 2 reasons. Suddenness of the sound, and amplitude. How they work by making the speaker generate the exact same sound that is coming into them, but out of phase to the original sound, thus cancelling it. The little speaker in the headphone cannot get anywhere near as loud as a rifle shot, so it has no hopes of working... ALSO noise cancelling have sound processors in them to generate the reversed sound wave...which have a slight delay in them"... I use in ears, and Cans when shooting.
 
injundon said:
I don't think any "noise cancelling" headphones would work for a gunblast in part to 2 reasons. Suddenness of the sound, and amplitude. How they work by making the speaker generate the exact same sound that is coming into them, but out of phase to the original sound, thus cancelling it. The little speaker in the headphone cannot get anywhere near as loud as a rifle shot, so it has no hopes of working... ALSO noise cancelling have sound processors in them to generate the reversed sound wave...which have a slight delay in them"... I use in ears, and Cans when shooting.
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agreed, noise cancelling by reverse sound wave is not practical for the price point - I have not seen cancelling muffs. I have Howard Leight Impact, they are basically normal muffs with mics and speakers to amplify the sounds you do want to hear like speaking, range commands. A sound you don't want to hear like a shot is blocked because the microphone cuts out. They work well IMHO.
 
injundon said:
I don't think any "noise cancelling" headphones would work for a gunblast in part to 2 reasons....
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OK.. I don't think that you understand the difference between "noise cancelling headphones" and "electronic ear protectors"

Noise cancelling headphones don't significantly reduce the sound pressure that reaches your ears, it just converts the sound energy to something that you can't hear. Sounds like the dull roar of a jet engine (from inside the passenger comparment), or tire noise on a bus, are canceled, in much the same way that if someone is pushing you down a hallway, you can cancel the action by having someone else push in the opposite direction with the same force.

Electronic hearing protectors on the other hand are just like regular muff-type hearing protectors, except they have small speakers in the "cups", the amplifier that drives those speaker is set to cut-off the power when the external sound reaches a pre-set level.
For instance, if you are hunting, you'll hear about the same as you would with no ear protection on, until you take your shot, which will sound like a loud "click", and then it'll sound just like if you were wearing regular muff-type hearing protectors (for about 1/2 a second) then the electronics will come back to life.

Electronic muff-type hearing protectors, function just fine as regular hearing protectors just by switching them off.

So "noise cancellers" and "E-muffs" are really designed for exactly the opposite conditions. The "Noise cancelers" make hearing some things better in an enviroment of steady noise. The E-muffs work for sudden impact types of noises and really don't work very well in high noise enviroments.
 
I could write ya a book on sound.. but as per usual. always learning something new. I was not awake or electronic ear protectors.
 
Electronic ear muffs

Yes they were working immediatley prior to this. we were shooting prairie dogs big fat ones of course exploding them just like cherrie tomatoes. I just bought a pair of MSA ear muffs so hopefully they are better they should be for the price. It doesnt matter what you use for hearing protection it is this way


YOU HAVE ONE CHANCE TO GET IT RIGHT

do it right the first time

EDGE
 
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